Foxes, foxes never change
by Libious
Summary: Corporal Judy Hopps has a difficult task ahead of her. Being a peace messenger in the wastelands is far from easy. To make matters worse, she will be accompanied by a sarcastic, cynical fox mercenary, that thinks nothing of killing anyone that stands in his way. Will this duo be able to work together? Or will their differences be the cause of their demise? Rated M. WildexHopps
1. Chapter 1

**Welcome!**

 **This is something that came to my mind after thinking about Zootopia and Fallout at the same time ;)**

 **The idea is to have Zootopia's characters with their original personalities and see how they fare in the cruel world after a nuclear war. It's M rated because of violence and language. LOTS of violence. You have been warned.**

 **And yes, it's a WildexHopps story.**

 **Feedback, questions and suggestions are welcomed.**

 **Chapter 1**

The run-down, large shack was built from various not matching metal sheets. Rust was the main theme for the construction. It wasn't unique in any way, there were dozens of similar shacks spread throughout the wastelands after the nuclear war. Some had tenants, some didn't. This one was housing a pack of rather dirty and ugly bunch. And the front door opened with a creak, revealing a female hyena dressed in a ragged armor, comprising of many scraps of different metals. She stretched her back a bit and took off the rifle she had slung over her arm. The mammal directed her pawsteps towards a pig in a similar looking attire that was crouching not too far from the shack and smoking a cigarette.

"Oi, time for shift change. Where's that dumb fucker?" She barked, approaching him from behind, referring to another guard that was stationed outside but now was nowhere in sight.

The pig simply pointed a thumb at the corner of the shack over his shoulder and made a _psss_ sound with his mouth.

"Oh, really?" Then go and drag his ass here." She ordered the pig, but the mammal only shrugged and blew a stream of smoke. In the next second he got hit on the head with the butt of the rifle. " _Move it!_ " The female snarled.

The pig grumbled something unintelligible, but got to his hooves and strode in the direction he pointed earlier. As he disappeared around the corner, the hyena sat on a nearby rock and surveyed the horizon, looking for any possible threats. Apart from a small pack of radroaches and several ghouls in the distance, there were none. And after few minutes she whipped her neck around and yelled. "Hey! The fuck you're doin' there?! Jerkin' each other?!"

No answer.

Muttering curses under her breath, the female gripped her gun and walked where the pig went. When she got around the corner, a sharp hiss escaped her mouth. Two corpses had lay on the ground before her in a pool of blood.

" _Shit!"_ She raised her weapon in an instant and nervously looked around, but found nothing. The hyena opened her mouth to call the rest of the group when a sharp blade ran across her throat and a stream of blood gushed out, causing the female to collapse to the ground with a gurgle.

Seconds later a group of mammals, that were engaged in a game of poker by the round table inside the shack, heard a crash of glass from the window and instantly reached for their weapons. But a grenade that landed right in the middle of the table top was faster. The explosion sprayed the walls with blood and singed body parts, as well as alarmed other residents of the building. The door to the other part of the shack was kicked open and a coyote barged in with a 9mm SMG only to notice a silhouette in the entrance. She had no time to react as she fell down with a bullet between her eyes. Two other raiders that went through the door shared the same fate. And right after that a vicious scream filed the shack.

"YAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Someone from the other room pulled a trigger and a hail of bullets showered the walls and the door from the other side, ripping holes in the thin wall. The rain of projectiles eventually stopped and a cautious figure appeared in the doorframe. A camel in a heavier armor than others and weapons in both hooved palms. A 10mm pistol and a combat knife. His nervous eyes scanned the empty room now filled with bodies, blood and smell of gunpowder and burnt flesh. The mammal surveyed the surroundings and jumped out to the middle of the room

"Come on, asshole! Show yourse-"

He felt metal pressed to the bottom of his jaw.

A gloved finger pulled the trigger.

Few minutes later a single mammal exited the shack, carrying a small sack. His red fur was brightly visible in the scorching sun. He was wearing a worn, brownish duster coat, along with protective boots and gloves. A sniper rifle slung over his back, two pistol holsters on the sides of his chest and a full backpack completed the look of a wasteland traveler. His eyes surveyed the horizon, looking towards the distant bulk of the New Vegas Strip. One eye, to be precise. The right one was covered with a black eyepatch. And it was not a gaze any mammal would like to be graced with. Foxes in general had an opinion of being treacherous, sly bastards that would shoot you in the back for a handful of dollars. But this one had a stare of a mammal that has seen a lot of crazy shit and would have no qualms with slicing someone's throat from the front and watch them bleed out to death, not breaking the eye contact.

He tightened his grip on the sack and headed towards the city.

.

.

Sergeant McHorn was in trouble. His feet ached and he was breathing heavily. This was not like any other opponent he has faced before. And that is much to say, considering that the rhino had experience dealing even with feral elephant ghouls. But now he couldn't even follow his enemy's movements. He thought that he noticed a grey blur stream past him so he spun around, only to see two small hindpaws coming at his head. They connected with his jaw, effectively shaking his brain and sending the unconscious rhino to the ground with a loud thud.

"Stop! Winner, corporal Hopps!" The referee announced his verdict.

The grey doe was bouncing on her hindpaws and pumped her fist in the air. "Woohoo!" She whooped with satisfaction from the victory. She was dressed in plain, khaki shirt and pants, issued for every trooper in the NCR army. Basic sparring clothing.

"Ok, who's next?" She chirped enthusiastically, punching her gloved paws together. The gathered soldiers looked one at another, not sure if there were any volunteers left. They were in the middle of a large building that was previously a mall of some sorts. NCR has adapted it into a training center for recruits in the Nevada state. And now a fair amount of them was engaged in friendly sparring session, with a ring in the center of the crowd. Among them, a rather hyperactive doe.

The rabbit was eager to face someone and scanned the mammals with her amethyst gaze.

"Hopps!" Came a shout from the door and she recognized the voice of her lieutenant, the mammal in charge of accommodating her in the base for the time of her transfer. She quickly took off the sparring gear and ran towards her superior. Few of the recruits breathed with relief when she left. The doe came to halt right in front of the polar bear in question and saluted crisply.

"Sir!"

"That was your fifth opponent in a row, Hopps. Let them catch some air and don't treat the local troops as punching bags. Now come with me, you have a guest." He gestured for her to follow him.

"Guest, sir?"

"You'll see."

After they traveled through several long corridors of the building, the bear showed her to a small office.

"Get your ass inside. Once you're done, report back to me." And the predator marched away to his own office.

The rabbit knocked respectfully on the door and a muffled voice invited her in. As she walked inside, the grey mammal saw a uniformed lamb seated behind a battered wooden desk, focused on reading a file in her hooves. The doe noticed name ' _Hopps'_ written on the front cover.

"Shut the door and sit down, corporal." The lamb ordered her. She was wearing the insignia of a colonel.

"You've called for me, ma'am?" The rabbit saluted and posed a question.

The lamb nodded as her guest sat down in the chair in front of the desk. "Indeed." She flipped a page of the file. "Judy Hopps, age 21, a volunteer, enlisted a year ago in Vault City." The small mammal recited from the document. "Originally from Bunnyburrow, a farming community near Modoc. Joined the army to…" She leaned closer to the paper. " _Make the world a better place?"_ Only then the lamb raised her eyes and looked at the doe inquiringly over her glasses.

"Yes, ma'am." Judy fidgeted a bit with her paws. "I have thought about enlisting enlisted after I heard about the Battle of Hoover Dam. I was so impressed with the achievements of the soldiers, especially the 1st Recon Ranger unit… I mean, they were like heroes in my eyes. Standing against the Legion and their vile ways. And… um… I've heard about one of the rangers… The soldiers stationed near Vault City even called him The Hero of The Dam. He was one mammal who sniped several enemy centurions and even when wounded himself, he ensured that the rest of his squad would get to safety before Boulder City would be blown up. And after the battle he refused any medals and is still serving, anonymous among the soldiers. At that point I thought that I'd like to be like him. Someone strong and humble, protecting the innocent mammals from the Legion and the likes of them."

If her words could sparkle, the lamb would have been blinded by the glow. The woolly mammal cleared her throat and closed the file.

"Ah, yes… _that_ guy." She sighed while putting the documents down.

These words made the doe spring up from her seat and place both paws on the desk. "Do you know him?!" She yelled out, but right after that she realized what she just did and fell on the chair again. "Uh, my apologies, ma'am…"

The lamb corrected the glasses on her nose. "The name's Bellweather, corporal. _Colonel_ Bellweather." She emphasized her status. "And don't worry about that. Instead, I want you to focus, as I have a task for you."

Judy Hopps straightened herself up and saluted. "Yes, ma'am!"

"At ease, corporal. Now listen closely." Bellweather put her hooves together and placed them on the desk. "You were called here as reinforcements, in case of an open conflict with the Legion at the Hoover Dam, but I have a different mission for someone with your… abilities."

"Ma'am?"

"I am convinced after our talk, that you have the proper mindset to act as a representative of the NCR in the vicinity of Las Vegas."

The doe raised her brow in surprise. _"_ A _representative?"_

"Correct. You shall act as an independent unit, with the goal of befriending the local community. Convincing them of our goodwill. In short, do some good in that area, to show that NCR cares for the people."

Judy's eyes lit up. "Wait, so you want me to act as a…" She gestured with a paw, looking for a proper word.

"…a representative of NCR. You have the attitude that fits best this task. Plus, I have read your file. Excels in paw-to-paw combat, best test results from the entire battalion and a number of praise letters from your instructors."

The doe blushed a little, hearing this summary. "I just tried to do my best." She mumbled with a small smile on her lips.

"As many do, Hopps. But not with such impressive results. Therefore, this is _your_ mission. But," she raised a hoof "The Mojave Wastelands are very treacherous, so you will be assigned a guide, who will also act as your bodyguard if needed."

The grey corporal scrunched her nose at this. "A bodyguard? Ma'am, with all due respect-"

"This is not up for negotiation, Hopps. You can think of it as a kind of support and mark my words, when you walk into an unknown battlefield, you need all the support you can get." The lamb scolded the small soldier and the rabbit's ears drooped.

"Oh, yes, you're right. I'm sorry, ma'am. My mistake."

"We learn all the time, Hopps. Just make sure that you won't die in the process. And don't worry about the guide, he's considered to be one of the best mercenaries in the Mojave and his sniping skills are said to be on par with our 1st Recon." The colonel gave her a smile. "Well, that will be all. You'll receive more details from my attendant later. Do well and you shall be properly rewarded, this is an important mission after all."

Judy Hopps nodded solemnly. "Ma'am… This may be a bit bold of me, but… Can I ask for a specific reward after the mission is over?"

Bellweather raised a brow at this question. "Oh? And what would that be?"

"Um… I'd like to meet the Hero of The Dam!" Judy blurted out with sparkling eyes.

"Huh?" This actually surprised her superior officer. "Ehm, well… I think… I think that it could be arranged, but ONLY if the mission is a success."

The radiant bunny pulled off a salute. "I will not let you down, ma'am!"

"I hope so, Hopps. Dismissed!"


	2. Chapter 2

**Welcome!**

 **I am terribly sorry for such a long break between the chapters, but... ah, to hell with excuses... Sorry :/**

 **Moving on!**

 **Chapter 2**

Whatever dream the cheetah was having, it was most likely connected with something sweet and rich in calories, if the feline's blissful expression and weight were any hints. But now that dream was abruptly brought to an end when a sack landed on the desk right next to his head.

"Waah!" the plump clerk yelled and sprung back, effectively falling to the floor along with his chair. When he gathered himself from the cold wood his gaze went up to the face on the other side of the counter.

"Sweet sugar and pies, Nick! You want to give me a heart attack?!" he gasped at a red furred fox. "Really, knocking on the door wouldn't kill you, you know?"

The vulpine raised an unamused brow. "Want to bet on that?" he replied, eyeing the cheetah.

Benjamin Clawhauser opened his mouth to say something but instantly shut it back. He was discharged from the NCR army two years back, after receiving an injury that made it impossible for him to continue his service. A close friend of his pulled some strings and got him a job as an office clerk, responsible for handling bounties issued on various crooks and criminals. He would manage assigning mercenaries to particular missions and collect proof of hunting down the targets, which was followed by paying up the bounty. Still, he had seen his share in the field and knew that sometimes soldiers got caught in traps when they were too carefree and opened every door or even knocked without thinking. Not to mention booby traps that could explode right into your face if you weren't cautious enough. Veteran mercenaries usually didn't have that problem, because if you are stupid and laid-back you never get to live long enough to become the elite.

And now one of said veterans was standing in front of him.

"Check it," the fox stated plainly and sat down on one of the cheap, rusty chairs by the opposite wall. He pulled out a book that had singed edges and even a coffee stain, from his equally tarnished backpack and proceeded reading it.

Benjamin sighed. "Nick, I know that you wouldn't cheat on the jobs, there's no need-"

"Check it," the vulpine repeated, not looking up from his book.

The cheetah groaned and grabbed the bag from his desk, his sense of smell already picking up what could be inside. He sauntered over to a metal table in the back of the office and untied the string from around the fabric. Almost immediately his nostrils were assaulted by the stench of blood and rotten meat.

"Ugh! I hate this!" he grumbled but turned the bag upside down and a piece of flesh fell on the metal surface with a s _plat._ Benjamin instantly covered his nose with a paw. "Sweet Jawsus Christ, Nick! What is this?"

"His tattoo," came an answer from behind the book.

" _Great…_ " the feline eyed the drawing on the body part and hurried to a one of the file cabinets that were lined up by the wall. His paws tugged open one of the drawers and quickly shuffled the gathered documents. He fished out one of them and flipped through the pages. The cheetah paused to read a few lines from one particular page and nodded. He put the file back in and closed the drawer.

"Ok, it's all correct, satisfied?" Benjamin got a dirty rag from the floor and used it to pick the piece of meat and throw it into to the bag. Then the bag got thrown out of the window and landed on a pile of trash in the street one floor below.

"Sheesh, Nick. I wish you stopped bringing in this kind of stuff. I got yelled at by my boss when he found a _piece_ of one of your bounties lying around."

The fox closed his book. "Proof of death, as per the contract," he stated, unmoved by the cheetah's problems.

"Yeah, but… _flesh?_ Come on, an earring or their favorite sunglasses would do," the chunky feline quickly scrambled to his desk and snatched an open box of potato crisps, deeply inhaling their smell. "Ahh, that's better…"

The red furred predator was already standing by the counter, packed to leave. "Money, Benjamin."

"Yeah, yeah…" the clerk leaned down to an old safe that was placed under the desk and took out a small, clinking sack. "Here, 250 caps."

It was snatched from his paw and disappeared in the backpack. "See ya."

"Oh, wait, wait!"

The fox was already turning towards the door, but stopped.

Benjamin reached to one of the desk drawers and pulled out another piece of paper. "There is a contract that might interest you. I got it only yesterday."

"Maybe some other day, Benjamin."

The cheetah grinned. "The pay is 6000 caps. Plus reimbursement of your costs," this made the vulpine freeze in place. He slowly turned his head to the smiling feline.

"See? I knew you'd like it!" Clawhauser beamed at the mercenary.

"Alright," the smaller predator took off his backpack and folded his arms. "Tell me more."

.

.

Corporal Judy Hopps stared at her glass of water. She was stuck at this bar-slash-barracks for several hours now and her contact either was on bad terms with the word 'punctual' or decided to ditch the job. Since her arrival at the Mojave Outpost, the farthest NCR facility to the south in this area, she was sitting there, wasting time. The interior of the building was divided into two sections - the part with bunk beds and the area with a rectangular isle that served as a bar. She got a few strange looks from other soldiers and was hit on by a drunken fox in a smelly, dirt covered coat and a broad hat that covered his face. Fortunately, he accepted a verbal denial and didn't bother her again, though voiced his disappointment with an unintelligible slur. Still, she patted her pockets just to be sure that her money was still there. Just as she did that, the inside of her ears turned pink in embarrassment. Contrary to the Hopps' family upbringing and her childhood incident with Gideon, a fox from neighboring village, she tried not to be judgmental of other species, even foxes.

She sighed into her drink.

It certainly wasn't easy for her to earn her position in the past year. Constantly laughed at by other recruits for being a _cute, little bunny_ , she fought her way to the top and got appreciation as the best participant of the grueling boot camp. Through blood, sweat and tears she earned the rank of a corporal, also thanks to recommendation letters from her instructors, which she got in recognition for her hard work and outstanding results. Still, outside the camp she was usually treated like a mascot or a token bunny, even by fellow soldiers, regardless of their own rank. It irritated her that she had to practically demand respect from regular privates, who mostly sniggered or talked behind her back. It wasn't that she thought herself better than other soldiers, but she believed in the military order and hierarchy. Judy couldn't imagine badmouthing a superior officer even if she personally didn't like them, so she wasn't able to comprehend why lower ranks openly disrespected her. It made the bunny feel that two stripes on the shoulders of her greenish-brown armor were invisible to all but her.

And being here, in a completely new environment, didn't help her situation one bit. It was even worse, as large part of the bar patrons wasn't aware how sensitive a rabbit's hearing is. Therefore, she was constantly picking up pieces of conversations around her and none of them were pleasant for her.

 _…such a tiny ball of fluff…_

 _…got promoted for being cute…_

 _…probably fucked some colonel, that's how she got the rank…_

Judy gripped the mug tighter, knuckles whitening, while the inside her ears turned red. And it that exact moment a pig private decided to approach her, climbing to the seat beside her.

"Heey, cutie pie. All alone heere?" he mumbled, his speaking impaired by large intake of alcohol.

The doe took a calming breath. "No, I am waiting for someone."

The pig leaned closer. "Awww, don't beh like thaat. Why don't we haf some fuun?"

Judy snapped her head towards the drunk mammal. "What was that, _private_?" she growled while tapping the insignia on her sleeve.

But he completely ignored the warning in her voice. "Come oon, instead of a carrrot, why don't I give ya somefin' else to _bite on,_ huh?" He suggested and attempted to wiggle his eyebrows.

But that was the last straw for the doe. Her paw shot forward, grabbing the collar of his armor and she jumped down from her stool. Gravity aided her own weight in pulling the surprised pig to his front and down, causing the drunken mammal to topple forward and land heavily on the bar's floor. The thud he made alarmed several other soldiers and everyone's eyes turned to witness the scene. The thrown pig groaned and rubbed his head, while Judy stood right next to him, her hindpaw thumping furiously.

"I am _corporal_ Judy Hopps and will not tolerate such a display of disrespect! You _will_ address your male and female superiors with _sir_ or _ma'am_ , respectively!" Then she felt the stares from around the room and glared back at the looking mammals. "Anyone has a problem with this?!"

But none of the present patrons and soldiers decided to reply and they only shook their heads, still surprised by the sight of the pig sprawled across the floor.

Judy huffed and stomped towards the door to grab a few intakes of air outside. But one of her ears twitched when she heard a faint metallic sound behind her. The doe spun around to see the pig rolled over to his stomach and dragging out a pistol he kept behind his belt.

Her body tensed, ready to leap at the idiot, who apparently intended to threaten her with a gun.

" _I_ see a problem here." Suddenly said an amused voice behind the angry hog.

The smelly fox who was hitting on her earlier stepped forward, stomping on the lying mammal's wrist. The pig squealed and the pistol dropped out of his grip. Surprised at this turn of events Judy gave the vulpine a once-over to better assess who's she dealing with. The mammal in front of her hid his face under a dusty, hat, his body was covered with a long-sleeved coat that once was brown but apparently, time and sun turned it into a color of the dirt and sand that covered the Mojave. It was unbuttoned, so the doe caught a glimpse of a khaki tank top on his torso with a bit of cream fur visible under his muzzle, plus a glint of a thin chain around his neck and that was it. Nothing out of ordinary that would raise suspicion or interest. Had he not approached her earlier, she would have ignored him as part of the surrounding clientele.

Two other privates, a wolf and a deer, decided to intervene at this point and they've begun approaching the vulpine from behind. "Hey!" one of them shouted, but then his companion grabbed his arm and pointed at the fox's back. Right under the dusty coat the vulpine was wearing, a small bulge was showing a faint outline of a pistol's barrel pointed at them.

Both privates stepped back.

The fox walked up to the bunny, kicking away the pig's gun. "Since when NCR is stupid enough to recruit mammals that forget checking if their enemy is really knocked out and defenseless?" he reached up to remove his headgear and Judy saw a single green eye staring down at her. The other one was covered with a black eyepatch.

"'Nice meeting ya' is what I say, but that's actually a lie, because it's not a pleasure for me. But, since I'm a fox, lies are to be expected, right?"

.

.

A red furred vulpine walked out of the bar, putting his pistol back to the hip holster and headed to the left to corner the building, an angry bunny hot on his heels.

"Hey!" she overtook him and faced the vulpine by getting in front of him, walking backwards while talking. "You were there the entire time!"

"Well done deducing that," he replied sarcastically, shifting the straps of his backpack a bit. He got it a moment earlier from behind the bar, along with his hunting rifle.

"Why the hell did I sit there for hours, when you could have approached me earlier?!" Judy exclaimed, her nerves already spread thin, this male's reaction just adding fuel to the fire.

"I needed to see who I am going to work with."

"Oh, how nice. And where was my chance to know something about my guide?!"

She received a shrug. "That's how I work, sweetheart. If you don't like it, you can only blame yourself for coming here."

"It wasn't my choice, I was given an order!"

"Then if you have a problem with orders, you shouldn't have enlisted for the army," he indicated her uniform. "It's not a place for dumb bunnies."

They stopped. Her nose twitched furiously and she narrowed her eyes, stomping her hindpaw on the dirt. "I'm _not_ a dumb bunny!"

 _Click._

"Right," he smirked and pointed at the ground, "and that's not a _landmine_."

The doe's eyes widened in shock. "W-w-what?!" she glanced down and indeed, her hindpaw was standing on something buried in the sand with a brightly lit tiny red light. There were several other small bulges in the sand nearby.

" _Don't move,_ " he ordered her and crouched on the dirt. "Had you paid any attention, you would've noticed that we've reached my motorcycle and wouldn't have stepped on my theft-prevention-system."

"It's _your_ mine?!"

The fox relaxed and sat on the ground in front of her. "Yep."

"S-so you know how to d-defuse it, right?" She stuttered, barely keeping it together.

He rested his cheek on one of his paws. "Hmm, I'm thinking if I really want to…"

"What?!"

"See, you weren't very nice to me, so it's too much of a hassle to save some rude rabbit," the fox explained with a brazen smirk.

Judy closed her eyes and took several breaths. They were rather shallow. "Okay, okay, I'm sorry. I'll be _nice_ , how's that?"

"Hmmm…" he stared at her for a moment with half lidded eyes. "You know, I've never kissed a bunny before," his smirk turned into a wide grin.

And just his amusement grew, Judy's ears gradually fell lower. Her paws shot forward and she shook them frantically. "NO! _Nonono,_ no way!"

He raised a brow at her reaction, smile disappearing from his face. "Eh? Oh well…" he got to his hindpaws and threw one leg over the motorcycles seat. "So be it."

"What?! You're going to leave me like this?!"

"Why not?" he said while placing the rifle in a special holster attached to the vehicle.

Judy groaned internally, her thoughts speeding in her mind, trying to find a solid argument. "We have a contract! You were supposed to protect me if needed!"

But the fox was unfazed. "I can get a dozen other contracts by the end of the day."

The doe clenched her fists in a nonverbal depiction of her anger. "You… you're despicable!"

Another shrug of his arms. "Sticks and stones, love. No money, no honey."

His words only agitated the bunny even more. "I'm _not_ going to-"

He placed his paws on the pawgrips. "Then nice knowing ya', corporal Fluff."

"WAIT!" she yelled, reaching out to him, mentally scolding herself for this reaction. "I… I'll do it," she muttered through her gritted teeth. "Just disarm it."

His smirk returned. "Okay," he got off the vehicle and crouched right in front of her, his muzzle just inches away from her face, the glittering emerald gazing at her with a playful spark.

"C-close your eyes," she mumbled, looking away.

"Hm? Why?"

"Just do it, you jerk!" she hollered into his face and the fox was forced to narrow his eye from the sudden outburst.

"Alright, alright…" he did as he was told.

Judy could feel her heartbeat accelerating for various reasons. Humiliation and shame being the top two. She always imagined that her first kiss would be something romantic and so pleasant that she'd cherish the memory forever. And now she was being forced to give it up to some nameless, stinking fox under blackmail. She wanted to cry, but forced herself not to. Upon entering the boot camp Judy promised herself to never shed tears, no matter how bad things would turn out. And there was hardly a situation worse than this. Swallowing back the lump that formed in her throat, the doe braced herself for the nightmarish experience and closed her own eyes while puckering her lips.

What she wasn't aware was that the vulpine was observing her from behind slightly lifted eyelid. Seeing the doe's inner struggle painted so clearly on her face, the fox mercenary slowly shook his head. Then he reached out with one paw and cupped her right cheek, while placing a soft kiss on the left one.

Judy's eyes shot open and at the same time she heard another _click_ near the ground _._

"See? Wasn't that difficult," he said in a matter-of-fact tone.

The red furred predator gently lifted her leg and dug the mine from under her hindpaw. Just as he placed it on the side, a grey-green mass hit him on the chest and tackled them to the dirt.

" _You fucker!"_ the doe yelled into his face while gripping the fabric of his shirt with both paws. Normally, she never cursed, but this time she was willing to make an exception. "I should skin you alive for this!"

Then, in a blink of an eye, one of the vulpine's paw shot up and yanked her back by the ears. She yelped and the fox used the momentary distraction to flip them over. Now the bunny was on the ground, a pistol pressed to the side of her neck.

"Listen good, as I'm going to say this just once," he growled, their noses touching. "I wasn't hired to be nice, to be your friend or give you a shoulder to cry on. I was hired as your protection and a guide, nothing more. And I will lead you wherever you want go and guard you from everything this wasteland can throw at you, even if I have to pull you out from the jaws of a Deathclaw," the fox withdrew the gun and stood up, putting the weapon back in the shoulder holster. "You don't like me? Fine. You hate me? Whatever. I'm not expecting any sympathy from you, but I'll expect you to trust my skills and experience in roaming around these lands. Are we clear?" he offered his paw at the end of his speech.

Judy shot him a hateful look, but couldn't disagree with his logic. Being a very optimistic and cheerful person by nature, she hoped that she could be friends with her companion. But even if that was impossible, given the fox's character, she would still follow her orders any make sure that the mission is a success. Therefore, she had no choice, but to play along.

"Clear." The doe huffed and reluctantly accepted his help. To her surprise, when she got up the mercenary brushed off the dirt from her uniform.

"Wha-"

"Can't have you dirtying my ride," he put on another smirk. But something in the back of her head tingled her mind, as if to deny his words. Some weird instinct that cautioned her not to believe this sentence. She shrugged it off and decided not to deliberate on this too much. For now, she settled for mumbling under her nose. "Jerk…"

"If you say so, Fluff."

Judy rolled her eyes. "Stop calling me that."

"Why? It fits you."

"Just… don't."

He eyed her for a second and eventually shrugged. "Okay… _Carrots._ "

She stomped her hindpaw. " _That_ too! My name is Judy!"

"Yeah, yeah…" the fox muttered, as he pulled on a pair of gloves. "Before we go, let's make one more thing clear: _I_ set the rules. No! Listen here," he cut her off by raising a paw. "No matter how skilled I am, I can't guarantee your life if you rush the enemy lines with a knife in your paw, got it? So here's the thing, rabbit. I'll tell you how this is going to work," the vulpine pointed a finger at her. "I say a rule and I want to hear 'I'll do as I'm told' as an answer, got it?"

Judy's nose twitched furiously as she counted to ten in her thoughts to calm down. "Fine, _Slick_."

Her use of a nickname earned her a slight smile. "If I tell you to fight?" he inquired of the lapine soldier.

The bunny folded her arms while putting on a rebellious expression. Nevertheless, she answered. "I'll do as I'm told."

"If I tell you to leave the talking to me?"

"I'll do as I'm told," she rolled her eyes.

"If I tell you to run?"

"I'll do as I'm told…" Judy sang in a monotone voice.

"If I tell you to turn around and bend over?"

"I'll do as- WHAT?!" her cheeks heated up significantly.

The fox sniggered. "Just making sure you pay attention," he settled on the seat and turned to her.

"Let's not waste more time. I assume you too want to get over this as soon as possible, so hop on," he patted the free space on the seat in front of him. Judy didn't move and, seeing her expression, the fox sighed. "Now look here, this is not a joke about your species or your name. It's just an expression that normally functions in our language, okay? So don't look for any hidden meaning behind this and just sit here so we can be on our way."

He ignited the engine and the doe got on the motorcycle, muttering incoherent curses in his direction. Her nose twitched and cringed, now that she was closer to his smelly coat and her body jerked forward a bit to not touch the dirty clothes. But she failed as his arm snaked around her waist and pulled her frame to him, her back now pressed firmly to his stomach. Surprisingly _hard_ stomach. If she hadn't looked at him earlier in the bar and registered that he was wearing only a thin tank top under the coat, Judy could have sworn that he was wearing some kind of an armor. This fox was _ripped._ The bunny felt a tiny bit of warmth gathering in her body, pretty much against her better judgement.

"Again, don't read into this," she heard from above her head. "I'm just making sure you won't fall off."

"You got a name?" the doe asked of him to point her thoughts into a safer area. She'd sooner let herself be stung by a giant radscorpion than admit right now that she had a thing for athletic males.

"Nick."

"Nick…" she tested the word on her tongue. "Nick what?"

"Nick _none-of-your-business,"_ he stated firmly.

"That's a nice name," Judy commented, her voice laced with sarcasm.

"Whatever you say, _Fluff."_

She used their closeness to sell him an elbow to the ribs, getting a quiet, but still satisfying _oompf_ from the fox.

"Just drive, _Nick._ "


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello to all,**

 **Long update time, I know. Sorry...**

 **Not gonna bore you with anything.**

 **Thank you for reading this story so far.**

* * *

 **Chapter 3**

Leaving the post, the small duo drove right next to the tall statue symbolizing the unity between The Desert Rangers of Nevada and New California Republic Rangers. It was made of varying pieces of metal melted together. Figures of a jackal in a combat armor and a hat and a coyote in NCR issued ranger armor, captured in a moment of shaking paws as a symbol of cooperation. Judy felt pride at the sight of the statue. It reminded her of the mission the NCR had in these lands - to bring stability and peace for all mammals. The statue reaffirmed her belief that enduring the rude company was her duty, as she has been entrusted with a task and her own comfort played no role in it.

The were now driving down the cracked road riddled with abandoned, rusting cars and trucks. A sad reminder of what used to be the primary mode of transportation in this country before the war. Now the roads seemed like a cemetery of metal corpses.

"So where now, princess?" The fox asked over the rumbling of the engine.

Judy rolled her eyes at another name he used for her. She hated what it indicated, that she was fragile and helpless. Still, with his apparent liking to give her names, the doe decided that it would be a waste of time trying to correct him every single time. Though it didn't mean that she couldn't talk back.

"New Vegas. I'd add 'prince charming', but you have no charm at all and stink so much that there's no way that you're a prince."

He let out a short snort that Judy would categorize as either amusement or approval.

"Unfounded accusations. I'll have you know that many vixens in the Strip would vouch for my charm!" Then his voice dropped into a mocking tone. "Though I doubt a prude like you would get it."

Judy felt a slight blush decorating the insides of her ears. Though a virgin herself, something her younger and more experienced siblings teased her about, the doe was fully aware of the mechanics of sex. Living for years under one roof with at least a dozen lust driven brothers and sisters, among a throng of normal ones, gave her enough knowledge to deal with suggestions made by the fox.

"Oh, I get it alright. But I can't help to think that none of them were anywhere near satisfied." She shot back, listening intently to his reaction.

He let out a chuckle. "Whaddya now? The cute, lil bunny can bark!" His voice was now clearly amused and not fazed in the slightest by her reply. The fox kept his paw on her stomach, keeping her in place, and driving with the other paw.

His words caused her to scowl. "Don't call me cute or you'll see that I can do more than bark!" The doe snapped at him, her arms actually itching to make good at her promise. She wanted to physically get back at him for what he did earlier, as well as shut him up regarding her skill.

"We'll see about that." Nick replied and turned left on a crossroad, directing them towards a ruined gas station nearby. "For now we need to make a stop here."

They pulled over by one of the rusty dispensers and the fox turned off the engine, taking his paw off her.

Still slightly on the edge after his comment, Judy hopped off the motorbike and surveyed the surroundings. The location consisted of the area meant for vehicles and refueling them, placed under a wide roof with Poseidon company mark right next to it, a small workshop and the general shop just nearby. It may have thrived in the pre-war days, but now it was nothing more than an abandoned pair of structures in the vast sea of dirt and sand.

Nick got off their vehicle too and undid the straps that tied his backpack to the motorbike and took it with him. He headed towards the workshop building. "What is it with bunnies and getting so worked up with being called 'cute' anyway?" He asked her while strolling to the door.

Judy folded her arms, sparing the vulpine's back an annoyed stare. "It's stereotypical." She gave him the shortest answer possible, not keen on dwelling more on this subject.

"Oh?" Nick shot her an amused look over his shoulder, apparently enjoying that he found a sore spot he could press on. "Care to elaborate?"

Judy narrowed her eyes. With how he approached the subject, she decided to reply in a fitting manner. "And why would a _sly, shifty_ fox want to know?" The doe replied, putting extra emphasis on the adjectives, while following him with several feet of distance between them.

Upon hearing this Nick turned around, giving her a lazy smirk. "I am shifty, many can testify to that. Sly? You can bet on that. Those are the requirements to survive out here. If you can't adapt to the wasteland it will swallow you whole." He closed the distance between them in few long strides. "So that's it? You just hate being defined by your appearance?"

She held her gaze on him, adding a defiant layer to it. "My appearance has nothing to do with who I am."

His smirk widened. "Really? Then I can call you 'Fluff' whenever I want, right? Since it has _nothing_ to do with you being a bunny."

Judy clenched her paws into fists, feeling that her annoyance started rising to dangerous levels. "I'm not going to tolerate when you call me names, just because you think that I'm small and weak!" She nearly shouted these words.

Then, Nick leaned forward with his smirk gone, replaced by a neutral expression. "I never said you were weak." He said only that and turned around to walk up to the door.

Judy was about to retort when he opened his mouth. She had a snappy reply at the back of her head, but after hearing his words she simply deflated. Did he just said what she thinks he said? Did he just told her the words she had never heard from anyone ever since enrolling to the army? Judy has spent many months on grueling training and always putting in extra effort in comparison with other cadets, putting more into the drill and learning new skills to prove everyone that she's as capable as the rest if not more. Her fellow cadets always judged her by her appearance and their crude jokes about does and how good they are at multiplying stopped only after she started beating them in sparrings.

Why would this particular mammal, and a fox at that, would say-

Click.

Her train of thought was brought to a halt when she heard a very distinct noise of a pistol safety catch being flipped. The doe's ears twitched, along with her nose, at the sight of the fox by the door with a gun in his paw. His teasing playfulness now gone, giving way for an alert expression. He turned his head to her and pointed with a finger to his nose, then pointed at the door. The meaning of this gesture was simple.

He could smell something or someone behind the door.

Judy approached his side, careful not to make noise with her hindpaws as she moved, and took a spot on the other side of the door. Her sensitive ears confirmed her companions' caution. She could pick up muffled steps and faint ruffling sounds. It was highly unlikely that it was some sort of a wasteland creature, given that the door was closed and only sentient beings were capable of using door handles. That left them with the option of a mammal, most likely a scavenger, rummaging for any valuable items left behind.

Nick reached for the door with his free paw, gun at the ready in the other. Judy cringed at the sight, the picture of an armed mercenary walking in on an unknown mammal was contradictory to her vision of a messenger of peace. Therefore she took a quick step forward and placed a paw on his wrist.

The fox shot her a look from the corner of his eye and Judy leaned forward, pulling him down a bit, shortening the distance between their faces to just few inches.

"I'm going first, hide that." She hissed at him, pointing at the gun, with a voice so low that only he could hear her. Judy didn't want to risk that the mammal inside overhearing them. Just in case. And before he could react in any way, apart from taking in a sharp intake of air, Judy reached for the handle and walked inside.

The interior was a small space with two long tables by one of the walls, their surface riddled with various tools. The floor was covered with trash and rubble, several empty bottles laying here and there. The bunny noticed also a closed door in the wall opposite to the entrance. A hunched figure was crouching right in front of it, its paws fiddling with the door's lock. The figure was rather short and slim, covered in a duster coat, a small backpack resting on the floor nearby.

Judy quickly went over the possible scenarios in her head and eventually decided to just start a conversation and see where it will go. She cleared her throat to grab attention of the mammal. "Excuse me."

Her words caused the figure to spin around, paw shooting to the holster on its hip.

"Don't even think about it, Weselton!" A low growl from Judy's companion made the jumpy mammal freeze in place. The fox trailed behind the doe like a shadow, his posture alert, ears directed at the male before them. He kept the gun down at his side, but still with the safety off, ready to fire. The sharp gaze of his emerald eyes was monitoring the mammal's movements, as if daring him to make a wrong one.

"It's Weaselton. Duke Weaselton." The small predators' reply was flat and instantaneous, suggesting an automated answer to the misspelling of his name. After that reply Judy watched the weasel's eyes widen at the sight of the fox. The slim mammals' paw very slowly left the area of the holster. He raised it to the level of his arm, so that there was no doubt that he's not looking for trouble. The bunny couldn't stop a curious spark in her mind that wanted to know how these two know each other. Especially with the fearful glint that flashed in the weasel's eyes when he noticed Nick. Apparently her vulpine companion had quite a reputation. She made a mental note to question the fox about it later.

"Sir, I am corporal Judy Hopps of the NCR army and we're not looking for any trouble." She hoped that her voice was soothing enough and words properly chosen to not cause any more tension. Last thing she wanted was a fight on the first day of her assignment.

"No trouble?" The weasel snorted, his gaze shifting from the uniformed bunny to the tod. "That's rich, travelin' in a company like this!" He sniggered.

Nick, on the other paw, didn't find this situation amusing, if the scowl on his face was anything to go by. "Well, we just accidentally stepped into some turd, so why don't you scrape yourself off our soles and get the fuck outta here."

Judy's gaze traveled from one predator to another and wondered what had to transpire between them to reach this level of animosity. She tried to defuse the situation by stepping between the predators.

"Alright, alright, let's not get hostile here. Mr. Weaelton," she addressed the weasel, "both sides can just go about their business without killing each other, right?" Though speaking to the scavenger, she directed the last part to Nick.

"Hah!" Weaselton snorted at her words. "Yer attitude doesn't match yer company, miss Flopps!"

Judy kept her annoyance about the name to herself and maintained a calm expression on the outside.

"It's Hopps, sir." She corrected him. "Back to the matter at paw, we don't want to fight," the weasel threw a quick glance at the gun in Nick's paw, "so feel free to continue whatever you were doing and we will just do what we came here for, right Nick?" Again, she addressed this part to the fox, trying to make sure that he understands.

All she got in response was a muttered 'whatever' and there was no change in his expression.

"Hah," Weaselton snorted. "Fine, just keep that maniac off my back, will ya?" He pointed at the tod, but checking the bunny's reaction.

Judy simply nodded with a friendly expression on her face, though she couldn't help but wonder why this mammal was so nervous around her guide.

Duke edged towards the door lock again, keeping his eyes on the fox, though now he was smiling slightly. The presence of Judy and her apparent command of the situation reassured the weasel a bit. Nick kept him in his sight too, the green stare not leaving the weasel for even a moment.

And said weasel seemed to be not too bright as he spoke again, his voice dropping to a mocking tone. "Still, for you to be NCR's bitch... You are one greedy son of a wh-"

"Get out." Judy heard a low voice from the fox, the tone itself being a threat. She noticed movement with the corner of her eye and turned her head to see her guide aiming his gun directly at the weasel's face.

Weaselton's body visibly sagged, deflating at the sight of the weapon's barrel pointed at his head.

"Out." The fox growled. " _Now_."

And that was it, no cliche lines, no threats or promises of any kind, only two words and a glare that turned the weasel's legs into jelly. And even though Nick's voice gave off a menacing vibe, his face was completely stoic. No part scrunched in anger, no raised lip and bared teeth, nothing to indicate this sudden display of hostility, save for the green orb piercing the smaller mammal with a gaze that stated Duke's impending death without wasting time for a blink.

Duke's survival instincts finally kicked in and, after swallowing hard, he very slowly raised his opened paws to show his submission and started shuffling towards the door, gathering his backpack on the way.

"Nick! What the hell?!" Judy finally found her tongue, the surprise at the fox's actions giving way to anger. However her remaining complaints were cut off when the mercenary used one paw to grab her shoulder and pull her behind him, all the time keeping the moving mammal at gunpoint. Nick kept his paw on her and steered them in a way that he was constantly between the bunny and the weasel.

"Stay quiet." He told her. The doe wanted to protest at first, but when she heard his voice her response got trapped in her throat. He gave her an order, one she couldn't bring herself to disobey. There was something in his voice… Something familiar but she couldn't exactly pinpoint it.

Weaselton finally made it to the door and quickly slipped outside and out of their view. Thanks to her sharp hearing, Judy could hear hurried footsteps, which at one point turned into a tumble and a thud on the ground followed by several curses, before going back to sound of running and fading into the distance.

Meanwhile, as if nothing happened at all, Nick holstered his weapon and strolled over to the door the weasel tried to open with a lockpick.

"Hey!" Judy finally found her voice and bounced over to the fox's side. "What was that about?!"

Nick took the lockpick left by the weasel and focused his attention on opening the door in front of him. "Just threw some trash out of our way, got a problem with that?"

"You don't just point a gun at someone like that! What's wrong with you? You could've just ignore him, but no, you threatened to kill him!" Judy raised her voice, pouring out her frustration at the fox's actions.

Nick simply kept picking the lock without even sparing her a glance. "You done?"

Click.

The metallic sound announced the opening of the door and the vulpine stood up.

The doe balled her paws into fists. "No! I'm not going to tolerate you pulling out a gun at every person we meet! Why did you do it?" She persisted while the fox opened the door, revealing a small storage room. It had two metal storage racks that were slowly succumbing to the progressing rust. Among several cardboard and wooden boxes Judy could see a dirty piece of rag in the corner, covering something bigger than the dusty clutter laying around. Nick set down his backpack and reached for the piece of cloth while letting out a sigh.

"That moron, even though stupid, would figure out that I really want to get something from here if'd just pressured for him to leave. Dumb as he is, there was no telling what dirty tricks he could've pulled off. He could trail us, lay an ambush outside..." He pulled off the rag, revealing a set of clothing and a piece of armor. "So playing a part of being pissed at his words was a more valid option." He cast her a lazy glance over his shoulder. "The third one was shooting him where he stood, but I figured you wouldn't like that. Satisfied?"

Judy's ears relaxed at his response, the tension leaving her muscles. She was surprised, to say the least, that he had such reasoning for that. The doe didn't expect him to be so considerate of her worldview after their initial exchange and his rude behavior. It suddenly occurred to her that there might be more to this fox than met the eye. That and the fact that even when he threatened the weasel with his gun, the fox kept himself between them, something that made her both irritated and slightly warm inside. The irritation came from the fact that she considered herself perfectly capable of protecting her own hide and didn't need anyone's help to do that. Ironically, the same fact of being protected was the reason of the faint feeling of internal warmth. Being an independent bunny all her life, never expecting anyone doing something for her, always first to do things for others, Judy never experienced anyone standing up for her or protecting her from anything. Even if this was under contract, it was a novel thing for the young doe and caused an unfamiliar, but pleasant tingle.

"Yeah… a better option." She muttered, eyeing curiously the stuff uncovered by her companion. And then her eyes grew wider when the fox dropped his backpack and shrugged the coat off his shoulders leaving himself just in the sleeveless shirt. Several pistol holsters came to her view - under his left shoulder, on the belt by his right side and even one on the small of his back. Judy was about to ask his reason for undressing when her gaze fell on his arms and her voice got trapped in her throat.

Almost every inch of his arms was covered in scars and wounds. Cuts, healed up holes, possibly stab wounds and even patches of fur missing, revealing burnt skin, there were even a few bite marks. The doe stared at the fox with mouth agape, her eyes shifting from wound to wound, travelling along the uncovered parts of his body. As she blatantly stared at Nick her own paw has risen to her cheek where it brushed the fur hiding several thin scars from a childhood incident.

 _Sweet cheese and crackers…_

Judy couldn't stop herself from thinking about the origin of those wounds. Where did they come from? When did it happen? Who did this to him? All those questions flooded her mind as she stared in silence as the fox put on the chest-piece of the armor. He slipped it on his torso along with the shoulder pads, before strapping on also a couple of shin guards. To complete his outfit the fox put back on his coat, once again hiding the gun holsters. He also picked up a few items left on the floor and put them into his backpack.

Judy blinked when he turned towards her, the movement breaking her out of her stupor.

"We're going." He announced and passed by her without another word.

The girl opened her mouth to say something but the fox was already at the door so she closed her mouth and hurried after him. Once outside, her guide started strapping his backpack to the motorbike again, preparing for departure.

In the awkward silence between them Judy mulled over what she could say to the fox, not comfortable with such a quiet atmosphere. But asking about his scars right off the bat seemed improper, so she decided to go with a different topic.

"Say, how do you know that weasel? I'm assuming you've met before?" She folded her arms as she observed his work.

"When you're travelling across the Mojave," he pulled on a strap, "you're bound to bump into pieces of shit like him."

Judy rolled her eyes. "Why do I get a feeling that you don't like each other?" Her voice was now laced with sarcasm.

He shot her a side look of his green eye, pausing his work. "There are very few mammals that _like_ me." Nick told her with a smirk as he leaned down, supporting himself with a paw on the dusty ground, to look at the backpack from a different angle and reached with other paw to check on the hold of the sack.

"That's not what I have meant, but I understand that feeling." She shot back, giving him a stare of her half-lidded eyes.

The vulpine's lips formed a wide smile and he pulled the last strap before standing up to face the bunny. "Aren't you a feisty one."

She locked gazes with him. "You'd be surprised."

Nick let out a sigh and moved his paws, mirroring her gesture of folding arms. "Alright, then let's put it to the test." He nodded towards the bunny, his smile suddenly gone, replaced with a serious expression. "Attack me."


End file.
